Given that the rate of elicited expressive communication in the present study is much lower than the suggested rate of teacher prompt, it can be assumed that teachers of students with autism do not actively promote their students’ expressive communication.
The results also indicate that verbal prompts and a combination of verbal prompts and modeling were the most commonly used instruction. However, simple (non-combined) prompts were most effective in eliciting a communicative response with kids with the most severe autism. But most surprisingly, physical prompts did not seem to be as effective as verbal prompts, which may also explain why verbal prompts were use significantly more by these teachers.
In sum, the study has implications for the type of techniques that are effective in eliciting communicative responses in children with severe autism. In this study simple verbal prompts and modeling were the most effective strategy to elicit communicative responses in these children.Chiang, H. (2009). Naturalistic observations of elicited expressive communication of children with autism: An analysis of teacher instructions Autism, 13 (2), 165-178 DOI: 10.1177/1362361308098513
In sum, the study has implications for the type of techniques that are effective in eliciting communicative responses in children with severe autism. In this study simple verbal prompts and modeling were the most effective strategy to elicit communicative responses in these children.
Increasing evidence has shown that, in animal stroke models, administering melatonin significantly reduces infarct volume, edema, and oxidative damage and improves electrophysiological and behavioral performance.
Given that melatonin shows almost no toxicity to humans and possesses multifaceted protective capacity against cerebral ischemia, it is valuable to consider using melatonin in clinical trials on patients suffering from stroke.
Google had a booth at the Autism Society of America conference last month so they could show off their free software program SketchUp. SketchUp was originally developed for users to create, modify and share 3D models. Turns out SketchUp helps folks with autism develop some skills, too.
Google had a booth at the Autism Society of America conference last month so they could show off their free software program SketchUp. SketchUp was originally developed for users to create, modify and share 3D models. Turns out SketchUp helps folks with autism develop some skills, too.
The study, published online today in the journal Pediatrics, examined an intervention called the Early Start Denver Model, which combines applied behavioral analysis (ABA) teaching methods with developmental 'relationship-based' approaches.
The five-year study took place at the University of Washington (UW) in Seattle and was led by Dawson, then a professor of psychology and director of the university's Autism Center, in partnership with Rogers. It involved therapy for 48 diverse, 18- to 30-month-old children with autism and no other health problems.
At the conclusion of the study, the IQs of the children in the intervention group had improved by an average of approximately 18 points, compared to a little more than four points in the comparison group. The intervention group also had a nearly 18-point improvement in receptive language (listening and understanding) compared to approximately 10 points in the comparison group. Seven of the children in the intervention group had enough improvement in overall skills to warrant a change in diagnosis from autism to the milder condition known as 'pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified,' or PDD-NOS. Only one child in the community-based intervention group had an improved diagnosis.
In this study, the intervention was provided in a toddler's natural environment (their home) and delivered by trained therapists and parents who received instruction and training as part of the model.
Parents are taught strategies for capturing their children's attention and promoting communication. By using these strategies throughout the day, the children were offered many opportunities to learn to interact with others.
A novel early intervention program for very young children with autism - some as young as 18 months - is effective for improving IQ, language ability, and social interaction, a comprehensive new study has found.
The Howard Hughes Medical Institute describes how researchers using "high-throughput gene sequencing technology" were able to identify several de novo or spontaneous gene mutations in 20 children with sporadic autism spectrum disorders -- that is, their family members showed no other sign of autism.
The team identified 21 spontaneous mutations -- meaning they weren't inherited from either parent -- in the children's DNA.
Eleven of these were mutations that would alter the protein encoded by
the affected gene. In four of the 20 children, the researchers found
mutations that were severe, some of which have been previously linked to
autism, intellectual disability, and epilepsy.
one child had a mutation in the GRIN2B gene, which is crucial for neuronal signaling.
Another individual had an extra
nucleotide in FOXP1, a gene that, along with its close relatives, has
been heavily implicated in language defects.
These new findings support the
'multi-hit' model of autism, which suggests that having more than one
mutation can cause or worsen symptoms of autism and other brain
disorders. The different combinations of mutations may contribute to the heterogeneity in ASDs.
That such different combinations of genetic mutations contribute to a
child being autistic could account for why individuals with an ASD
diagnosis have some very similar, and very different, features.
"The Howard Hughes Medical Institute describes how researchers using "high-throughput gene sequencing technology" were able to identify several de novo or spontaneous gene mutations in 20 children with sporadic autism spectrum disorders -- that is, their family members showed no other sign of autism."
What this means is that there is likely to be a complex set of many factors that contribute to ASD - not one single cause.
The same exact situation is true for other entities, like schizophrenia and attention deficit disorder (ADD).
One difference, however, is that schizophrenia and ADD likely represent changes to particular parts of the brain, while autism is likely due to changes in the global architecture of the brain.
Getting back to the genetics of autism, current models are therefore consistent with what is being found when the genetics of autism is researched - researchers are finding many genes that predispose to autism in a subset of cases but no single or simple universal cause. At present, 133 different gene variants have been linked to autism.
This new research, conducted by Dr. Hakon Hakonarson of the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, is a genome wide analysis involving about 10,000 individuals.
The results are especially significant because the variants lie between two genes, called CDH9 and CDH10, which are known to play an important role in forming nerve connections in the brain.
The gene variants that correlated with ASD are for proteins that are involved in the process of neurons forming connections with each other. There is already other lines of evidence that suggest what is different in ASD brains is a decrease in the amount of interconnectedness and communication among neurons. It is therefore likely no coincidence that this study found genetic correlations for proteins involved with neuronal connections.
This also is compatible with the finding that many separate genes are potentially involved with ASD - for there are many separate genes and processes involved with forming and maintaining neuronal connections.
A new genome-wide analysis of families with autism has found significant gene associations, adding to the growing evidence for strong genetic contribution to autism.